Binding Ties
by nikkihime
Summary: A secret of the Souma has been exposed once more...is it a threat or an aid to the cursed family? OC insertion. Hatori as main chara.


Title: Binding Ties

Anime: Fruits Basket

Author: nikki hiiragizawa

Archives: http://www.geocities.com/soliloquy_5/

http://www.fanfiction.net

http://www.mediaminer.org/fanfic

Genre: supernatural/drama/angst (original character insertion)

Rating: PG-13

Disclaimer: Fruits Basket belongs to Natsuki Takaya and Hakusensha. This fic is made by a fan for fans. Please do not sue.

Author's Notes:

I finally had the courage to make a Fruits Basket fanfic. Goodbye for now, CCS and SD…^^. Anyway, the plot of this fic is thoroughly pondered and thought upon by mihari, my friend. This fic belongs to her as much as it belongs to me. Thanks for letting me encode your thoughts into words, mihari! ^^

Please enjoy, FB fans ^^

PROLOGUE:

The clock chimed the eleventh hour. Silence was all over the inner Souma compound. Only slight muffled sounds coming from the main house could be heard, as warm spring weather let the village sleep.

He knew he should be sleeping soundly by this time, but young Souma Yuki was restless. He cannot keep his eyes closed, and the noises from the main house were disturbing him. Shaking his head, he decided to get up and see what's going on.

Quiet as a mouse, he crept out of his own home, dashing silently on the path towards the other house nearby. The main house is where the clan leader, Souma Akito, lived. The house has its lights still on, and silhouettes can be seen moving about inside the receiving room. Straining to see through the little crack between shouji (1) doors, Yuki crouched down to see what was happening inside. His innocent purple eyes suddenly widened as he saw all the familiar figures inside arguing among themselves.

"Baka onna (2)!" Seven year-old Souma Akito yelled at the kneeling figure in front of him. "You tricked us! You tricked us!"

"Akito-bocchan," one of his servants said. "Do not exhaust yourself…"

"You think we wouldn't know, right?" the dark-haired boy continued to scream. "Your little secret…" He reached out to the girl, wanting to grab her hair with his claw-like fingers, but his attendants held onto him.

"Akito-san, get a hold of yourself," a kneeling man beside him warned him.

The girl kneeling before him did not make any effort to escape from Akito. She did not move, silent, as if waiting for the boy's judgment of her. "Akito-san…" she whispered. Perspiration was already running in rivulets down her face, I wasn't…I did not…I swear…"

"Urusai! (3)" A smart kick landed on the girl's shoulder, sending her sprawling in pain on the tatami mat. Still, she managed to get hold of herself and kneel back on the pillow. "Witch!" Akito sneered. "You are the bad luck! This is all your fault!" 

His caretakers decided that Akito had had too much. They persuaded the young master to go back to his room. He consented, but not without giving the girl last words. "I don't want to see your face ever again! Never!" he said. "You do not belong here!" He turned to his right. "Hatori, you know what to do." With a last bitter glance at the girl, Akito left the receiving room. The other spectators and elders shrugged and went out, none of them paying even a pitied glance to the girl on the floor. 

Of the two men left seated beside Akito's place a while ago, one stood up. He made his way towards the girl and whispered her name, thinking that she was crying. To his surprise, she looked up and gave him a warm smile. The young man, whom Akito addressed as Hatori, nodded and kneeled across the girl, wondering how could she smile at a time like this.

"I never thought Akito-san would do something like this to his sister," a voice said. The other man sitting beside Akito a while ago now stood up, too and walked towards them. Slowly letting himself down to a sitting position, he embraced the girl tightly.

"Arigatou, Shigure-'niisan (4)," the girl said, returning the embrace with the same fervor. Shigure released her after a few moments, and bowing to both Hatori and her, he opened the door leading to the garden and returned to his own home. 

The open door made the falling cherry blossoms float their way into the room, showering the two persons with their pink petals. The girl picked up one of the fallen blossoms and held it in her hand. 

The moment the other young man left, Hatori looked back at the girl, slightly confused with the way she was behaving. No tears sprang from her eyes, no hurt or pain tainted her face. She just stiffly sat on the mat, her eyes never leaving the hands laid delicately on her lap. Taking a deep breath, Hatori held her chin lightly with his fingers, coaxing her to look at him. "I am sorry," he started softly. "For doing this…"

The girl shook her head, sending her long black hair more into disarray. "Akito-san is the leader, and everyone must obey Akito-san," she replied with a hint of sarcasm. "But," she continued. "He may be right. I'll just be a burden to the Soumas, especially to the Juunishi." She tried to giggle, but the laugh caught in her throat. "I do not even know why you're so kind to me. You're supposed to be angry, too, right?"

"It's not your fault, nothing is." Hatori replied. He brushed away the cherry blossoms that landed on the girl's shoulder. 

The girl gave him a sad sigh. "Too bad nobody believes that now…" She gripped her kimono tightly. "Saa, let's get over with this…"

Hatori shakily tightened his hold on her shoulder. "I…I was…"

"Hatori-'niisan," she suddenly said. Her voice was changed from carefree to almost afraid. "Nee, will you promise me one thing?"

"What is it?"

She held the young man's free hand with both her own. "Promise me, that even if I forget, you won't forget Souma Kaede, okay?" When a long silence followed, she bowed her head. "I guess that's too much of a request."

Hatori bent down and kissed her cheek. Then, he raised his hand to cover her face. "I won't forget." He closed his eyes and began to concentrate on his power.

"No!!!" a small voice from behind the sliding doors screamed. The door were slid open rather forcefully. Hatori opened his eyes and looked at the door with panic. 

"Yuki…"

Yuki wiped his tears with his clenched fists and ran to the young woman's lap. "Kaede-'neechan!"

"Yuki, go back to sleep," Kaede, the girl, sternly said. She purposefully looked away from the child to refrain from meeting his eyes. 

"No!" Yuki stubbornly said, his small hands gripping the sleeves of the girl's kimono sleeve. "You'll just leave me!" Just like those kids I played with before! Hatori made them forget!" Yuki laid an accusing glance at Hatori.

"Yuki…"

"You'll make her forget!" Yuki screamed angrily at his cousin. "You're going to make 'nee-chan go away!" 

The young man was too startled to speak. Suddenly, he was surprised by a warm trickle of liquid through his hand. He removed his hand covering a part of Kaede's face and found out that she was crying. 

She was crying, but her face was of sheer determination. She grabbed Hatori's hand and placed it back on her head. "Do it, Hatori-'niisan."

"Kaede…"

"No! Stop!" Yuki was still at her feet. "'Nee-chan!"

Kaede laid a hand on the boy's head. "Move away. If Akito sees you like that, he'll be very angry."

The mention of Akito's name made Yuki scuttle a good distance from the two. Still, his crying did not stop.

Hatori looked worriedly at Yuki. He didn't want the child to see this horrible deed done but the girl called his attention. "Do it, Hatori-'niisan!" she commanded. The young man quickly returned to letting his power out.

"'Nee-chan! Don't leave me!" Yuki cried, almost shattering Hatori's concentration.

"Kaede…" Hatori started to say.

The girl gripped Hatori's hand tightly. "Do it, now!" A flash of light came in a fraction of a second and Kaede was thrown back forcefully on the floor, unconscious.

The young man sat back on his hunches and looked at the boy standing petrified in one corner. "You did it," Yuki whispered as he approached Kaede's unmoving form. "I told you not to…" Tears mercilessly slid down his face.

Hatori fisted his hands. "Gomen (5), Yuki…"

"I hate you!" Yuki shouted as he went out. He ran to his house, his cries still audible from far away. Lights turned on Souma Yuki's house, and Yuki was heard bawling inside his home.

The cherry blossoms continued to fall, a few of them landing on the girl's body. The warm spring breeze did not seem to be so warm after all, as Hatori stood up to cradle the girl's body in his arms.

The clock struck midnight, a new day has come. Embracing Kaede tightly, Hatori cried. He cried for the memories of Souma Kaede will forever remain.

TBC…

GLOSSARY OF TERMS:

shouji – paper sliding doors. In fruits basket, these door usually end up getting broken by either kagura or kyou. ^^ baka onna – stupid woman urusai! – quiet! It could also mean "you're so noisy" as long as it is mentioned to keep somebody quiet. 'nii-san – short for Onii-san, meaning older brother, or anybody in the family that's like an older brother i.e. older male cousin gomen – sorry. more polite term is "gomen nasai" or "sumimasen" 


End file.
